Patrick Warner, Lloyds Bank PLC
Steve and his team provided our afternoon activity on the 15th June. Steve’s brought a literal unbeatable energy to our team day and had a crowd of 180 people other diverse age and background all energised! Thankyou!! Highly recommend.
Patrick Warner, Lloyds Bank PLC
Harry Foreman, Sales & Marketing Executive, Centre for Assessment
“Steve at Unbeatable Energy was amazing! He delivered a 2-hour African and Samba drumming workshop for our company away day in Manchester city centre and went above and beyond, to provide a very memorable afternoon. Steve was very responsive from first contact to the day of the event. He made me feel assured that everything had been thoroughly planned and thought through and went on to deliver a brilliantly fun and engaging session. I was slightly unsure whether 2 hours would be a bit too long, but I think all 25 of us would have been quite happy to continue for another 2 hours! Thank you, Steve and Unbeatable Energy, we would certainly use you again and recommend your workshops to anyone looking for a fun and unique activity!”
Harry Foreman • Sales & Marketing Executive
Centre for Assessment
Julian Eve, Director of Learning and Development, Notts NHS Foundation Trust
Over the summer of 2018 the NHS Trusts across Nottinghamshire brought together two conferences of people to meet, plan and discuss the challenges that await the public services in 2019. These are challenging times and our NHS staff who work hard in clinical and non-clinical roles feel this deeply. When things are tough we can forget our collective strength, the opportunities and possibilities available to us.
The Boomwhacker sessions at both conferences provided the opportunity to symbolically pull together, to acknowledge difference and diversity and to collaborate in real time. A great and energetic way to finish a productive but challenging agenda.
Julian Eve, Director of Learning and Organisational Development
Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
Alex Sadiq, Planning and Development Manager, Aviva
Steve ran a session at our end of year conference. It immediately brought the energy up in the room for the rest of the day and feedback so far is saying it was the favorite part of the day! Thanks for a brilliant session.
Alex Sadiq, Planning and Development Manager, Aviva
Mike Slade, University of Nottingham and Institute of Mental Health
We really appreciated the Boomwhacker activity you ran – it worked amazingly in allowing 400 people from 25 countries to all suddenly speak the same new language! And what you said also helped our delegates to understand the importance of collective activity involving many voices. Many delegates made links between Boomwhackers and recovery in mental health (the theme of our conference) – so the activity generated engagement and connections between disparate people! Thank you.
Mike Slade, Professor of Mental Health Recovery and Social Inclusion,
School of Health Sciences, University of Nottingham and Institute of Mental Health
Anna Davies, Talent Sustainability Manager, PepsiCo UK and Ireland
“The Boomwhacker energiser was a tremendous success at our recent PepsiCo UK Operations Conference. Not only did it create high levels of fun, energy and team spirit in the room, it reinforced our theme of Simplify, Standardise, Connect and Leverage in a very memorable and engaging way.”
Anna Davies, Talent Sustainability Manager, PepsiCo UK and Ireland
Gemma McGrattan, Director, Synergy Creative
Just a note to say thank you once again for a fantastic performance today and really bringing some energy into the conference. Pass on my thanks to your team as well. I think it really added something special and I’m looking forward to hearing all the lovely comments back from staff.
Gemma McGrattan, Director, Synergy Creative
Claire Pawsey, PA to Executive Director, The Walt Disney Company UK & Ireland
“The afternoon with Unbeatable Energy was really enjoyable and worthwhile. It was amazing how it brought the team together. Steve lead the afternoon with great enthusiasm and everybody was engaged with the drumming and the ‘Boomwhacking’. We would definitely recommend this event for any team wanting to do something different and have some fun.”
Claire Pawsey, PA to Executive Director, Marketing Channels UK & Ireland,
The Walt Disney Company UK & Ireland
Julia Whittaker, Chief Executive Partner, Wilkin Chapman LLP
We recently held our annual Partners’ Day and asked Unbeatable Energy to come along to raise energy levels. We started with a Boomwhacker session and ended with African drumming. Although 36 lawyers probably found this a little surprising, it certainly did energise proceedings. The responsive rhythm of the drum beat brought everyone together. Steve and his team were excellent at engaging with us and I would recommend Unbeatable Energy for a corporate event where team building is important.
Julia Whittaker
Chief Executive Partner, Wilkin Chapman LLP
Natalie Boon, Media and PR, Vertex Solutions International
“Steve and Paul were nothing but friendly, enthusiastic and engaging. When we were told we would be doing a team-building exercise and trying to bond with our colleagues, some groaned at the prospect of being throwing into some trust and role play situations, but this wasn’t the case! We were instead transported to Africa, with some fun (if badly tuned!) vocals and vigorous drumming to keep us all connected, responsive and amused! It was great fun watching everyone get involved, and we really enjoyed being instructed in this novel and fantastic method. Thoroughly recommend as a very different and energising company motivator, or even just for a friendly party or more communal event. Thanks for the memories, you crazy fun people!”
Natalie Boon, Media and PR
Vertex Solutions International
Elaine Payne, Head of Institutional Strategy and Change, Higher Education Academy
Dear Steve, just to thank you for the session you ran for us last week in the Park Inn. Everyone really enjoyed the session and it is still a topic of conversation. After two days of planning it really lifted everyone’s energy and spirit. Please convey my thanks to Laura as well.
Elaine Payne, Head of Institutional Strategy & Change
Testimonial from GlaxoSmithKline – following a drumming ice breaker for the GSK conference
“Fantastic experience – it’s no easy task to get a group of over 100 people to sit up and take notice first thing in the morning but as soon as Steve and his team burst into the room it really got going. During the boomwhacker session we all loved how he communicated the instructions to us solely through mime, it really got everyone’s attention and the sound we managed to make was incredible. The drumming session we then had in the evening was equally as full of energy – the team really enjoyed the experience and it is definitely something we would consider doing again, both as an ice-breaker and an evening energiser.”
Tarra Simmons – Head of Colleague Engagement, Midcounties Co-operative Society
A great, different and exciting way of getting people to recognise the significance of working together and how as a team you can produce amazing results.
My brief to Steve was to bring the “Wow Factor” to the dreaded after lunch slot and when Steve and his team burst into our annual managers conference they succeeded in energizing and bringing together over 550 Managers from across our business. Feedback from the event has been extremely positive and Unbeatable Energy delivered exactly what they promised.
Monika Mankiewicz, University Programmes Specialist, Google
We hired Unbeatable Energy to provide fun musical team-building input to our Bold Immersion programme. The Bold Immersion programme provides a special opportunity for outstanding students to gain a rare glimpse into the technology industry, as well as receiving valuable personal and career development.
The focus of the event was on the values of leadership and group development. As some of the activities during the day involved an element of competition between teams in the group, we wanted something fun and fresh which would reconnect the students with each other and provide an experience which would celebrate group success. Unbeatable Energy’s Boomwhacker Energiser session was the prefect activity to achieve this.
Within minutes the students were playing multiple rhythms with the Boomwhackers and the room was buzzing with positive energy. Each individual part was quite simple when played on its own, but was transformed when played in synergy with all the other parts. Steve Rivers led the activity with energy, enthusiasm and passion and gave the group the confidence to achieve far more than they would have imagined in such a short space of time. As a result, the day finished with a strong sense of group achievement among the students who appeared thoroughly invigorated by the experience.
Tony Broderick, Chief Operating Officer, Aurum Holdings Ltd
Dear Steve, I am writing to thank you and your team for your outstanding support at our Aurum Conference and Awards event on Monday.
The Boomwhacker session was an incredible experience and the feedback from our delegates has been unanimously positive. The energy and passion displayed by you and your team was fantastic and was quickly transferred to our delegates. As well as having a great deal of fun, everyone took on board the teamwork message from the session, which is a reflection of your success.
The day has been repeatedly described as our best ever Conference and your contribution to that was significant. I particularly wanted to acknowledge and thank you for this.
As you will be aware from the content of the day, we value our relationships with our preferred partners very highly and it has been a pleasure to work with you and your team on this occasion.
Thank you again for your teamwork and great support.
Tony Broderick, Chief Operating Officer
Stephen Flynn, Marketing Manager, Allianz Commercial
The workshop was incredibly uplifting, it brought so many smiles to the group. It was the perfect tonic for a long day in a meeting room.
Tracy Griffiths, Business Network Chester
If you need energy, vitality and a bit of va va voom then Steve is your man! He can bring together a room of 80 people together in about 5 minutes and have them making beautiful powerful music! A pleasure to work with!
Alan Cairns, HR Director, Moneysupermarket
A truly unforgettable experience! We hired Steve and team to build a collegiate vibe in the middle of our “All hands” meeting, Straight Talk. The idea was kept under wraps and in the middle of a particularly challenging question, two orange clad guys wearing African drums leapt out and took over the stage…the looks on some people’s faces were priceless! “Boomwhackers” were quickly passed out to the 300 plus strong staff audience and the lesson began: ”this is how your boomwhacker works..”
Within moments a sound of sorts emerged and people really started to get into the vibe. Within a few minutes we were making a fairly passable tune and hearing over 300 people make a syncopated tune was utterly amazing. By the end we were singing African chants and it was clear people really enjoyed themselves. Feedback on the event was excellent and I would heartily recommend Steve and his merry drummers to all. If you’re looking for something different and thoroughly stimulating and creative, Unbeatable Energy get my vote!
David Yates, Marketing Director, ALD Automotive
“Coming up with new ideas for conferences to keep them fresh and alive is never easy but their enthusiasm and passion encouraged everyone to participate.”
David Yates, Marketing Director, ALD Automotive
Neeta Parmar, Jobcentreplus North West
“I would like to thank Steve Rivers of Unbeatable Energy Ltd for his professionalism and non-stop energy when he facilitated a Boomwhacker workshop for over 300 Jobcentre Plus Senior Managers from across the North-West of England. The Boomwhackers were part of our “Fusion – Celebrating Cultural Diversity” event that we held in Manchester which brought together senior managers heading up different Job Centre Plus departments from Chester to Carlisle and from Stockport to Liverpool.
We were delighted at the way the Boomwhacker session rounded of a highly successful sharing experience of working with diverse cultures. The aim of the full-day event was to inspire and motivate the managers as well as engender an understanding of how people can work together creatively.
The whole event went really well and achieved all our objectives with the Boomwhacker session being an exceptional end to the day. It’s not often that you can find something that gets everyone involved irrespective of age, gender or ethnicity. We wanted to bring people together and the session did that superbly with an energetic and inspiring end to the day.”
Neeta Parmar, Diversity and Equality Project Coordinator, Jobcentreplus North West
Jill Gore, Manager Sheffield Law Society
“Sheffield Law Society’s Annual Dinner is held in the Cutlers’ Hall and is one of the biggest events in our calendar. Honoured guests include the Lord Lieutenant of South Yorkshire, the High Sheriff of South Yorkshire, the Lord Mayor, judges and literally dozens of normally pinstriped solicitors and barristers.
This year we wanted to add some extra fizz to the evening, so we included a Boomwhacker session with Unbeatable Energy. It was quite amazing to see people normally considered reserved letting their hair down and thoroughly enjoying themselves. It certainly made for a very different Annual Dinner and one that will not be forgotten in a hurry. If you had suggested there would be over 400 members and guests of the Law Society thumping plastic tubes to make music in the Cutlers’ Hall, I might have questioned your sanity but the Boomwhacker session added a real buzz to the evening. The high-energy session provided by Unbeatable Energy was really uplifting and gave us something out of the ordinary.
I would have no hesitation whatsoever in recommending Unbeatable Energy Ltd as a first-rate, professional service provider of fantastic corporate entertainment.”
Jill Gore, Manager Sheffield Law Society
Alexandra Hunt, Information Commons Manager, University of Sheffield
“Just wanted to say again how much we enjoyed your performance at the Information Commons Launch. We had so many positive comments about the drumming and it really did give the whole event a real lift. I particularly appreciated the way you understood what it was we were trying to achieve and how you enacted this so effectively.
I hope I have the opportunity to include you in other events in the future – it certainly makes things much more interesting and it’s always good to keep people on their toes!”
Alexandra Hunt, Information Commons Manager, University of Sheffield
Janine Teasdale, Best Western Hotels GB
“Unbeatable Energy was the perfect choice for our marketing team away day, as we are always looking for ways to explore new and creative forms of communication. I would thoroughly recommend any company to consider an afternoon of drumming to unleash creative minds, energise the group and bring the team together… even our less outgoing team members became fully involved, it was getting them to stop that was the difficulty!
We have received nothing but positive feedback from the afternoon and the teacher was highly skilled and full of enthusiasm through out the session – what a fantastic idea!”
Janine Teasdale, PR and Communications Manager, Best Western Hotels GB
Andy Banks, Head of Business, Links Audi Macclesfield
“Steve’s energy was infectious and the feeling at the end of the evening was that we’d held a social event rather than a business meeting, but everyone knew that they’d demonstrated – themselves – that together, we can achieve great things.”
Andy Banks, Head of Business, Links Audi Macclesfield
Bill Quinn, Director Wentworth Consultants
“Wentworth Consultants is a company that specialize in helping teams perform better, so we were looking for a different and exciting event to help our own team bond, and we wanted to include our partners in the event. The afternoon drumming event provided by Unbeatable Energy was brilliant. Steve Rivers orchestrated our novice band of drummers into a high energy team who generated some unbelievable music together. Our partners really felt part of the Wentworth team and we still talk about our experience today.”
Bill Quinn, Director Wentworth Consultants
Janet Redhead, Investment Funds Administration, HSBC
“As the year end approached we were going through some major changes and challenges in terms of structure and service delivery. There were 150 people across all the different departments that needed to engage and contribute to recognising the role each individual had to play in supporting each other, celebrating our differences; clearly Unbeatable Energy played a key part with the drumming workshop.
We wanted something different, something a bit off the wall and we certainly got that! The positive feedback we received from members of staff was overwhelming. The drumming sessions gave participants the chance to experience the energising and therapeutic benefits of creating music together in a team, through focussing on percussion and rhythm. The workshops lasted 1.5 hours; it helped individuals in overcoming personal inhibitions and self-consciousness, whilst developing the group’s sense of team awareness and response, through examining the qualities inherent in African drumming. The sessions certainly gave everyone involved the chance to take part in a truly cathartic experience.
Working with Unbeatable Energy was a liberating experience and one I would recommend to anyone.”
Janet Redhead, Investment Funds Administration, HSBC
Chris Hudson, Associate Dean Leeds Metropolitan University
“It is a pleasure to write to you and convey our appreciation for your input to get our day off to an interesting start. Watching colleagues responses and body language was fascinating, in particular the difference when starting out compared to at the end of the session. I am certainly a fan and shall wholeheartedly recommend you to others seeking an innovative way to bind people together whilst challenging them and having some fun.”
Chris Hudson, Associate Dean Leeds Metropolitan University
Michael Turner, Michael Turner Photography
“If you’re looking for a team building experience for your company then Steve at Unbeatable Energy is your man. I’ve been on several of Steve’s African Drumming Workshops and they’re great fun, even for someone with no musical background…like me!
The workshops are brilliant for breaking the ice at corporate events. It’s amazing to see a diverse group of people – looking nervous at first because they don’t know what to expect – letting their hair down after just a few minutes and joining together to beat out those rhythms with style and a smile.
Steve is a natural communicator and team motivator. I would recommend an Unbeatable Energy Workshop as a great exercise to get your team working together. It’s different. It’s fun. And you don’t get muddy!”
Michael Turner, Michael Turner Photography
Child Adolescent Mental Health Service, Derbyshire NHS
“Team days are normally a cause for extreme anxiety – but this was worth repeating. It was a real leveller and is still being talked about a year later. Invigorating, absorbing, exhilarating – even for those who were terrified and those with no rhythm.
It provided a great sense of group collaboration and cohesion. Who’d have thought it possible – making beautiful music with your workmates.”
Comments from members of the Child Adolescent Mental Health Service, Derbyshire NHS
Magdalen Smith, First Choice Conference and Events
“We have hired Unbeatable Energy on many occasions to provide the fun ‘feel good’ factor to our clients’ conferences. Unbeatable Energy’s music facilitators have a great capacity to put delegates at ease in their events. Whether the event is for 100 or 600 delegates, it’s amazing to see how they manage to connect everyone in the room through the power of music. They provide a fresh and unique way of demonstrating the power of communication and cohesion in teams, leaving everybody motivated and inspired. We highly recommend Unbeatable Energy!”
Magdalen Smith, First Choice Conference and Events
Mark Lindsay, Inspire Creative Business Solutions Ltd
“Dear Steve, I had a meeting with our client yesterday. They were extremely complimentary of the way the whole event was run and thought that the drumming session was superb. They mentioned that the energy generated by you was just what the team needed after a late night for some the day before. Thanks again for your excellent input and I sincerely hope we’ll get to work together again on future projects.”
Mark Lindsay, Inspire Creative Business Solutions Ltd
Ian McLaughlin, Training Consultant at Raleigh International
“The theme for our clients conference was Respect and our challenge was to create activities where team members from regional offices were able to meet, network and work together to achieve shared results. We were really impressed with how Unbeatable Energy’s Boomwhacker Challenge session was able to breakdown barriers and provide a fun, engaging and memorable environment. As a result, participants were able to appreciate their colleagues and foster stronger working relationships for the future”
Ian McLaughlin, Director of Planning2Achieve Ltd, Training Consultant at Raleigh International
Allyson Jewell, Department Manager, John Lewis Sheffield
“Earlier this year we at John Lewis Sheffield merged two different teams in our Department Store, which meant bringing together two teams with very different cultures and ways of working. I wanted to get everyone off on the right foot with a team-building event. Instead of going for the usual problem-solving event or outward bounds course, we went for an African drumming session with Steve Rivers.
The drumming was a great ice-breaker, especially as none of us had done it before. It put us all on the same level and the energy is infectious! It really opened up people’s personalities; allowing us to get together as a team and learn a lot about each other. We will work on transferring what we have discovered to the shop floor so we can capitalise on our newfound strengths.
I wanted to bring the two teams together so they could get to know each other and it worked a treat. Several people told me at the beginning that they had to leave early but they all stayed till the very end. The room was buzzing with positivity and we will certainly be looking at running another workshop.”
Allyson Jewell, Department Manager, John Lewis Sheffield
Geoff Hignett, Director, Corporate Leadership Octel Corporation
“A key feature of the Octel culture we are trying to create is the dynamism and creativity of our people so they can make a difference in everything we do for our customers. When we hosted our annual conference for managers from our many international locations we wanted something fresh, invigorating and expressive of the cultural diversity in the Octel family. With Steve Rivers and Unbeatable Energy we got just that and much more!
Unbeatable Energy gave us an after-dinner experience we will never forget and one that had everyone in the room buzzing. I would have no hesitation in recommending them to anyone that wants their corporate event to stand out from the rest.”
Geoff Hignett Director, Corporate Leadership Octel Corporation